The Philippines would do well to incorporate an environmental
awareness subject in grade school to raise citizens’ awareness in environmental
protection and conservation, a former US park official said yesterday.
Steve Cinnamon, former chief of the Resource Management
Division-Midwest Region of the National Parks Service, said "environmental
ethics" takes time to develop and the ideal age to begin this is with children
in fifth or sixth grade.
Cinnamon worked at the National Parks Service for 32 years.
He retired last December and is visiting the country with his Filipino wife to
see some sights, including the underground river in Palawan.
Citing his experience, he said that the National Parks
Service began educating children in fifth to seventh grade during their field
trips about the environment 25 years ago to reinforce the school curriculum.
"My gross assumption is that they come back to the parks
because of their experience 25 years ago," he said.
The park experience puts children in close contact with
nature, raising their appreciation for things around them. This is important, he
said, because when children understand the issue, they not only create a
subliminal effect on their parents but the seeds of environmental ethics would
have been planted for generations to come.
He said environmental problems like waste disposal,
pollution, and forest and marine conservation almost always boil down to a lack
of education of the people.
There is a pending bill in the Senate, authored by Sen. Loren
Legarda, that would require the study of environment as an additional subject in
high school. Senate Bill 1097 has passed on third reading and is awaiting
approval by the House of Representatives.
"The school system has to be actively involved in this," he
said.
"Resource stewardship and consumption must be understood by
every individual regardless of economic income. They all need to recognize the
impact of their choices. It’s easier for the affluent to understand that but for
those in subsistence community it’s not going to be that easy," he said.
For example, Cinnamon said, it would be a challenge to explain to an upland
farmer why preserving a tree for a monkey is sustainable than him cutting it
down to provide for his family’s need for the whole month or two. – Minnie
C. Advincula
